Billiard-table top or



T O FICE.

GHAS. OROLEY, OF CINCINNATI, OHIO.

BILLIARD-TABLE '.roP'oB. BED.

T 0 all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, CHARLES CRoLEY, of the city of Cincinnati, in thecounty of Hamilton and State of Ohio, have invented a new and usefulImprovement in Billiard- Table Tops or Beds; and I do hereby declarethat the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof,reference being had to the accompanying drawings and to the letters ofreference marked thereon and made to form' part of this specification.'

Similar letters refer to like parts of the improvement.

The object of my improvement consists in'constructing the top or bed ofbilliard tables-so that the end of the wood will form the surface of thetable-and the nature of the improvement consists in the manner employedof arranging the bed,` to the frame of the table, in such a manner thatthe expansion and contraction of the bed, will not in any wise interferewith the level of the bed, when the end of the wood employed is made toform the surface of the bed or table or in other words when the grainsof the-wood composing the bed, is placed at right angles with thesurface of the bed-and a bed of a table thus constructed will deaden thevsounds produced by the balls in playing, comparedrwith the sound madeon a bed, constructed after the' ordinary' panel plan.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my improvement Iwill proceed to describe'its construction and operation by referringdirect to the accompanying drawinofs.

Figure l, shows a view of the under part of the bed of the table showingthe manner of attaching the bed to the frame portion of the table. Fig.2, is a longitudinal section of the bed and frame of the table. Fig. 3,is an end view of the table frame-and Fig. t, is a side view of theframe.

a a, represents the table bed frame-and (B, B,) the bed which is madewith blocks of wood by gluing them together so that the grain of thewood will be at right angles with the surface of the bed.

The manner of connecting the bed B- B- with the frame (a, of the tableis fully represented in Figs. 1 and 2, and the object in connect-ing itis to allow the bed to expand and contract without interfering with thelevel of the bed and the first thing to be attended to in so doing is toleave -a space between the bed Bl and framel (a) .around its sides andends-as represented at ('R) for expanding-and then the bed is held downon the frame piece (a, a, a,) by means of the cross bars (O, O, 0,)attached to the under part of the frame and bed by means ofscrews (f, f,f,) and blocks of wood (el, CZ, Z,) as fully represented in Figs. l and2, and the cross pieces (O, O, O,) are made not to lit between the framepieces (g, g, 9,) and end of the frame (a, ca) at' the under part of thebed for the purpose of allowing all parts of the bed to move in itscontraction and expansion and thus prevent its springing up and down atany point. But the cross pieces at the same time are made to hold thebed (B, B,) sufficiently firm to keep it at all times rmly bedded on theframe pieces (a, (1,) of the table-and a bed thus constructed and heldto t-he frame of the table-it will not warp and get out of level byshrinking as table beds do constructed after the panel planand in commonuse-for when beds are made after the panel plan the grain of the wood ismade to run in different directions in the bed which causes a reactionin the parts of the bed and the wood in continuallyT shrinking andswelling from the different conditions of the weather cause the bed tobecome untrue when the grain of the wood is made to run parallel withthe surface of the bed-as it does when they are constructed on the panelplan. But when the bed is made with the grain of the wood to run atright angles with the surface of the bed the shrinking and swelling isobviated as .woodwill not expand and contract but very little endwiseand vnot sufiicient in the thickness of a bed to produce practicaldefects.'

(O, O,). is supposed to be the cushions of` the table.

As before stated beds constructed after the improved plan by having thesurface of the bed made with the end of the wood will not produce asmuch noise by the st-riking and rolling of the ball-as is made on theordinary panel beds and the cause of it is there is not as muchvibration in the improved bed as there is in the panel bed whichvibration is the cause of noise.

The bed frame is provided with spir'it levels, 7L, it, one or two on thesides and one on the ends for ascertaining when the bed is level andwith proper kind of screws atthe cross bars (C, C, 0,) screws (f, f, andblocks of Wood (d, al, 65,) arranged as represented for the purpose ofallowingthe bed (B, 13,) to expand and contract Without 15 becominguntrue as before mentioned and for other purposes specified in theforegoing specification.

CHARLES CROLEY. Witnesses:

CHARLES H. Fox, M. BENSON.

